The
Lord's Anointed

It is amazing how many
people who call themselves "Christian" don't actually know what the
word means. A "Christian" is a follower of Christ, but like most
people, I did not know what the word "Christ" meant for many years.
Like some, I assumed that it was part of his name. Others know that it is a
title, but don't know exactly what it means. The fact is, however, that the
word Christ comes from the Greek word christos, which means
"anointed one." It is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word, mashiyach
from which we get our English word, Messiah. The titles Messiah and Christ
mean exactly the same thing: an anointed one.

When
the Hebrew Scriptures speak of someone being anointed, it stems from the
practice of literally anointing them with oil. It represents marking them
out, or consecrating them for a special purpose or function. Three main
categories of people were anointed in the Old Testament: priests (Exodus 28:41; 40:15; Numbers 3:3), prophets (I Kings 19:16), and kings (I Samuel 9:16; 16:3; II Samuel 12:7). Although Jesus
fulfilled all three functions, the English word Messiah only appears a couple
of times in the Old Testament, mashiyach being most often translated
as "anointed." How then did Messiah or Christ come to be the
primary title for the Promised One?

From nearly the beginning,
the Hebrew Scriptures speak of One who is to come, in various ways, with
various functions. Genesis 3:15 refers to the Seed of the Woman who would
crush the head of the Serpent. The seed line was preserved from that point
forward, often in miraculous ways. This prophecy forms the foundation for all
the prophecies of the One to Come. Most of these prophecies speak of someone
whom God would send, but they don't specifically call him Messiah. The
following, from Judaism 101, explains the Jewish viewpoint of the
Messiah.

Modern scholars suggest
that the messianic concept was introduced later in the history of Judaism,
during the age of the prophets. They note that the messianic concept is not
explicitly mentioned anywhere in the Torah (the first five books of the
Bible).

However, traditional
Judaism maintains that the messianic idea has always been a part of Judaism.
The mashiach is not mentioned explicitly in the Torah, because the Torah was
written in terms that all people could understand, and the abstract concept
of a distant, spiritual, future reward was beyond the comprehension of some
people. However, the Torah contains several references to "the End of
Days" (acharit ha-yamim), which is the time of the mashiach;
thus, the concept of mashiach was known in the most ancient times.

When Israel was about to
give his final blessing over his sons, he said, "Gather
yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the
last days [the end of days]"
(Genesis 49:1). In his prophecy over Judah, he said the
following.

Genesis
49:
8 Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the
neck of thine enemies; thy fatherís children shall bow down before thee.
9 Judah is a lionís whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped
down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?
10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his
feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. [see NASB]

The name Shiloh in verse 10
literally means, "He to whom it belongs" (referring to the
sceptre). The lawgiver to whom this ruling authority belongs would come out
of the tribe of Judah. Another significant prophecy which also refers to the
sceptre and to the latter days was spoken by Balaam.

Numbers
24:
14 And now, behold, I go unto my people: come therefore, and I will advertise
thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days.
15 And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said,
and the man whose eyes are open hath said:
16 He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the
most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but
having his eyes open:
17 I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there
shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and
shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.
18 And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his
enemies; and Israel shall do valiantly.
19 Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him
that remaineth of the city.[see NASB]

These prophecies refer to
One who is to come, who would be a great leader, and who would rule God's
people. Psalm 2 refers to the kings of the earth rebelling "against the Lord
and against His anointed."
But God prophetically states that He has set His king upon His holy hill of
Zion. This king would also be His Son (verse 7). The coming king would not only be of royal
lineage, but also the Son of God ("I will be his father, and he shall be my son" - II Samuel 7:14).
"Son of God" is a Messianic title, frequently linked with "The Christ" in the New
Testament. †He would rule the nations mightily on his Father's behalf. As a
result of his rule, Israel and then the other nations would finally learn to
walk in God's ways. This vision is unfolded throughout the Scriptures, as we
shall see.

When the nation of Israel
was in the Promised Land, and God had chosen David to be king, we see the
first of many references to a king as the Lord's anointed.

I
Samuel 2:
10 The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall
he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he
shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

35 And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that
which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and
he shall walk before mine anointed for ever. [see NASB]

God's plan involved raising
up a king whom He would exalt and strengthen. The human kings of Israel,
throughout the Old Testament, were referred to as the Lord's anointed. (Other
individuals consecrated for a specific purpose were called "anointed"
also, such as Cyrus in Isaiah 45:1. But by far the most common use of
"anointed" was the king.) David refused to attack or harm Saul,
even though he was being pursued by him, because he refused to hurt the
Lord's anointed (I Samuel 24:6, 10; 26:9, 11, 16, 23; II Samuel 1:14, 16;
19:21).

Yet because Saul did not do
what God had commanded, his kingdom was taken away and given to David, who is
described as a man after God's heart (I Samuel 13:13-14). God was pleased with David's rule,
because for the most part he kept God's commandments, and even when he
didn't, he repented because his heart was ultimately to please God. So God
told David that He would establish His people in the land, and also establish
the throne of David to rule the people.

II
Samuel 7:
10 Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them,
that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall
the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime,
11 And as since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel,
and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies. Also the LORD telleth
thee that he will make thee an house.
12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I
will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I
will establish his kingdom.
13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his
kingdom for ever.
14 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I
will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of
men:
15 But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom
I put away before thee.
16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee:
thy throne shall be established for ever. [see NASB]

Many prophecies in the
Hebrew Scriptures have a dual fulfillment, that is, there is an immediate,
more specific fulfillment, and a long-term, ultimate fulfillment as well. The
specific and immediate fulfillment of these verses was in the person of
David's son Solomon, who built a house for God's name, after David died.
Solomon sat on the throne of Israel in David's place, and it is called the
throne of the Lord in I Chronicles 29:23 ("Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king
instead of David his father...").
The throne of Israel is called the throne of the Lord, because the king of
Israel was intended to be God's representative on earth, who would rule on
God's behalf. He would be a "vice-regent" or ruler second only to
God Himself.

But Solomon did not remain
faithful until the end, and by the time he died had turned to idolatry. The
kingdom was divided after that, and descendants of David and Solomon
continued to reign until the Babylonian captivity. Some ruled well, most did
not. After the people returned from captivity in Babylon under the Persian
empire, the promised kingdom of God on earth still did not materialize, and
the nation of Israel continued to be under the rule of various Gentile
kingdoms. Yet God had promised that He would establish David's throne for
ever. How would He do this when David's descendants failed to adhere to God's
commandments?

While the immediate
fulfillment of II Samuel 7:12 was in David's son Solomon, like many
prophecies there was also another, long-term fulfillment. The coming king's
rule will involve putting down those rebellious kings, as described in Psalm 2. In Psalm 72 is a promise that the king's son would judge the
people with righteousness, and their oppressors would fear him "as long as the
sun and moon endure, throughout all generations" (v. 5). †In addition, it says that he would
have "dominion
also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth" (v.
8).† †The
immediate son of David was Solomon, but his dominion was neither to the ends
of the earth nor throughout all generations. The ultimate fulfillment is
referring to the ultimate descendant of David, which God had promised with a
covenant (Psalm 89:3-4).

Psalm 132 also tells us that God would not turn from His
promise to David, and that He had specifically chosen Zion to dwell in. "This is my rest
for ever: here will I dwell" (v. 14). †Because of this He would bless the
people and establish David's throne.

The coming ruler is also
referred to in Psalm 110, the first verse of which is the most often
quoted Old Testament verse in the New Testament. The Messiah will sit at
God's right hand until his enemies are defeated, and he will then rule in the
midst of them.

Psalm
110:
1 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine
enemies thy footstool.
2 The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the
midst of thine enemies. [see NASB]

Isaiah tells us that in the
last days the Lord's house shall be established and exalted, and all nations
will acknowledge God and walk in His ways.

Isaiah
2:
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORDíS
house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted
above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain
of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his
ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and
they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into
pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall
they learn war any more. [see NASB]

How will the house of the
Lord and His rule be established? By means of His anointed king. The
well-known passage from Isaiah quoted in Handel's Messiah perfectly
describes the One to Come and his purpose.

Isaiah
9:
6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government
shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful,
Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the
throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with
judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD
of hosts will perform this. [see NASB]

Isaiah further describes
this coming ruler as the rod out of the stem of Jesse (David's father) in chapter 11. He would judge with righteousness and not by
sight. This would happen in those latter days when the earth was restored to
its former state and the wolf dwells with the lamb. The Lord will again
restore His people a second time (see The Kingdom In
The Prophets), and the root of Jesse would stand for a banner to even the
Gentiles (see Romans 15:12).

The prophets speak of David
reigning over God's people (Jeremiah 30:9; Ezekiel 37:24-25; Hosea 3:5), but their
prophecies were written after his death. Elsewhere it is clarified that the
promise of Davidís reign would be fulfilled by his descendant, and that David
would "never
want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel" (Jeremiah 33:17). This descendant is called The Branch in verse 15, and elsewhere.

Jeremiah
23:
5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a
righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute
judgment and justice in the earth.
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this
is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Jeremiah 33:
14 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing
which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
15 In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness
to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the
land.
16 In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and
this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.
17 For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want a man to sit upon the
throne of the house of Israel; [see NASB]

Several other well-known
prophecies refer to the One to Come. The Ruler "whose goings forth have been from
of old, from everlasting"
would come out of Bethlehem Ephratah, according to Micah 5:2. The "Man whose name is The Branch" (Zechariah 3:8; 6:12) was immediately fulfilled in the
person of Joshua the High Priest, but is also a type of Christ, who will
ultimately "sit
and rule upon his throne."
It has been the hope of Israel all along, starting with the promise of land
to Abraham, and the promise of a never-ending kingdom to David.

In Daniel, we read about a
kingdom given by God to the Son of Man (the title Jesus used most frequently
to refer to himself).

Daniel
7:
13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with
the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him
near before him.
14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all
people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an
everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which
shall not be destroyed. [see NASB]

In the vision, there are
four beasts preceding this, but they are clearly identified in the following
verses.

Daniel
7:
17 These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out
of the earth.
18 But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the
kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever. [see NASB]

The earthly kingdoms
represented by the beasts in the vision are replaced by the kingdom that is
given to the Son of Man and the Saints. (See more about the nature of this
kingdom in The Kingdom in the Prophets.)

As mentioned above, two other types of people were anointed in the
Old Testament, in addition to kings. These were prophets and priests.

Moses spoke of a Prophet
whom God would raise up from among the children of Israel (Deuteronomy 18:15-19). That Prophet would speak all that
God would command him to speak, and the world would be judged according to
how people received this ultimate Prophet (whom Peter identifies as Jesus
Christ in Acts 3:22ff).

The first four occurrences
of mashiyach in the Bible are referring to the priests, and are in the
book of Leviticus. They were anointed to offer sacrifices on behalf of the
people. The Promised One we've been reading about is not referred to as a
priest, nor is his sacrificial work a part of most of the prophecies, but
Isaiah spoke of a Suffering Servant who would bear our punishment. This Servant
would be despised and rejected of men. He would be wounded and bruised,
oppressed and afflicted, yet it would please the Lord, because he would be an
offering for sin. (The sacrificial system outlined in the Law was a
foreshadow of this ultimate sacrifice.)

For many years, Rabbis did
not know how to fit the Suffering Servant and the Davidic King together. In
fact some even believed there would be two Messiahs, calling them Messiah ben
Joseph (the one who would die for his people), and Messiah ben David (the one
who would be the exalted king).

Still, to most Jews of
Jesus' day, the title Messiah specifically referred to the promised Davidic
King. When Jesus proclaimed that he was that Messiah, but then died on the
cross rather than setting up the kingdom, many of the Jews rejected him. It
is for the same reason that many reject him still. They never considered that
the Mighty King would also be the sacrifice for sin. But to his disciples who
desired to know the truth, Jesus taught what he called the Mysteries of the
Kingdom.

Isaiah
52:
14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man,
and his form more than the sons of men:
15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at
him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which
they had not heard shall they consider. [see NASB]

After proclaiming that the
Kingdom of God was at hand, Jesus taught that certain aspects would be
different from what was expected. But he never changed the meaning of the
Kingdom of God, nor his claim that he was the promised Messiah. (See more
about the changes in Mysteries of the Kingdom.)

In all these prophecies,
the One to Come is presented, and the various images portray him as king, as
prophet, and as priest. Two verses in Daniel are the only ones in which mashiyach
is translated "Messiah." Yet the person who was promised throughout
the Hebrew Scriptures was to be a king, a priest, and a prophet, all of which
were anointed. What better title to sum up all of his attributes than Messiah,
the Anointed One, or in Greek, the Christ. This is the title that the Coming
One came to be known by in anticipation by the time of Jesus, and which Jesus
used to identify himself. He didn't have to explain it or define it, because
it was well known among the Jews of his time.

The one thing that all the
images of Messiah had in common was that they pictured a human being who
served and/or represented God. Nowhere in the Hebrew scriptures is there any
hint of God Himself coming to earth and/or becoming a man. †I cover this in
more detail in the Closer Look article on Who is Messiah.

The first thing that is
said about Jesus in Matthew 1:1 is that he was the Messiah, the son of
Abraham and the son of David. The angel told his mother Mary (in Luke 1:32-33) that "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most
High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He
will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no
end." The
prophecies about who the Messiah would be and what he would do are summed up
in these verses. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of God's promise to
establish David's throne for ever. This is why throughout the New Testament
he is called "The Christ, the Son of God." He is the ultimate
Anointed One.